119th (2025–2027)
H.R. 6169
The Fair Credit for Farmers Act provides immediate relief and long-term reforms to help struggling farmers manage debt and access credit. The bill pauses principal and interest payments for two years on federal farm loans for delinquent or financially distressed borrowers, reduces their interest rate to 0.125% during that period, and waives guarantee fees on new loans for beginning farmers, socially disadvantaged farmers, and veteran farmers. The legislation also removes past debt write-downs as barriers to future borrowing, allows hearing officers to grant relief to farmers harmed by USDA errors, and shifts the burden of proof in loan appeals so that farmers earning under $300,000 annually no longer have to disprove agency denials. These changes are designed to strengthen farmer protections and expand access to federal farm credit programs.